Hot mics are the talk of the moment.
Gillian Keegan has become the latest spokesperson to join the ranks of people caught out by a microphone they didn't realise was still on - often referred to as a 'hot mic'.
The Education Secretary capped a miserable week - with the RAAC concrete debacle plunging the return to schools into chaos – with some unfiltered comments at the end of an ITV interview.
The footage was shared widely on social media and generated many embarrassing headlines.
In case you haven’t seen it, Ms Keegan complained about the Government not getting credit for “doing a fu**ing good job because everyone else has been sat on their arse and done nothing.”
Education secretary Gillian Keegan is recorded on camera saying others ‘have been sat on their a***s’ on schools Raac crisis and shares frustration about not being thanked for doing ‘a f***ing good job’https://t.co/c02gI4dXiM pic.twitter.com/jWbYTVZl5D
— ITV News Politics (@ITVNewsPolitics) September 4, 2023
Hot mic hilarity, perhaps.
But it raised questions and speculation about who has been sitting on their bottoms and whether the Education Secretary really felt she was worthy of praise while the nation’s schools crumbled. It also left viewers wondering if this was a snippet of what was being said behind closed doors.
The comments led to calls for her to resign and reports she was fighting to save her job.
To her credit, Ms Keegan did face the music, appearing on Sky News later the same day - an uncomfortable interview that began with her being put in the humiliating position of having to watch her sweary footage.
And the memorable first question was: “So, do you think you are doing an effing good job?”
“I wasn’t talking about me, actually,” she said.
“I was talking about the department. The job I was talking about started in March 2022, so way before I was in (post).”
She also apologised for her “choice language”, described it as an “off-the-cuff remark,” and said she thought the interview was over.
The clip is a stark reminder of the importance of being careful around microphones.
And it got us scurrying through our media training archives to remind you of a few other hot mic gaffes.
Gordon Brown and his ‘bigoted woman’ criticism
One of the most infamous hot mic errors was produced by Gordon Brown on the 2010 general election campaign trail.
During a walk around in front of the media in Rochdale, he got involved in a tricky conversation with Gillian Duffy, a Labour supporter, who criticised several of his policies.
Although they appeared to part on reasonably good terms, the then Prime Minister forgot to remove his lapel microphone as he returned to his car.
He could be heard describing the exchange as a “disaster” and called Ms Duffy a “bigoted woman”.
When the footage was replayed to Ms Duffy, she described it as “very upsetting” and added she would not vote.
Mr Brown later had to endure having the gaffe played back to him during a radio interview, where he could be seen with his head in his hands – a reminder many radio studios have cameras.
He later visited her house and delivered a personal apology in an attempt to repair the damage. But he lost the election.
George W. Bush and the stinging criticism the US media found tricky to report
No stranger to a gaffe, George W. Bush’s plain-speaking criticism of a reporter during a campaign trail generated plenty of coverage.
During a rally in Naperville, President Bush smiled and waved at the crowds from a stage as a band played.
But his microphone was on, and he could be heard saying: “There’s Adam Clymer - major league asshole from The New York Times.”
His running mate Dick Cheney replied: “Oh yeah, he is, big time.”
The clanger caused complications for American newspapers which protected readers from this type of language.
The Washington Post reported that Mr Bush had used a “vulgar euphemism for a rectal aperture”.
Interestingly, Mr Bush did not apologise for the remark, saying: “I regret people heard the comment.”
Liz Truss and the “weird” décor
There are more damaging hot mic moments.
But I hadn’t seen this one before.
Liz Truss gave an interview to ITN from within Downing Street not long after becoming Prime Minister.
The country was beginning to feel the impact of her disastrous mini-budget.
But as Ms Truss prepared to defend her policies, there was something else on her mind.
“I think the décor in here is pretty weird,” she said as those around her set up the interview.
“You know these bookshelves were designed by Tony Blair?”
However, with just 49 days in the hot seat and having been outlasted by a lettuce, Ms Truss didn’t have the opportunity to stamp her taste on the property.
The singing CEO
Microphone mishaps are not restricted to the world of politics.
Sainsbury’s boss Mike Coupe grabbed plenty of attention after he was caught on camera singing ‘We’re in the money’ while waiting for a TV interview to discuss his supermarket’s plans to buy rivals Asda.
In footage released by ITV, he sang: “We’re in the money, the sky is sunny, let’s lend it, spend it, send it rolling along.”
The CEO later said he had been singing the song to “compose” himself before his interview.
But the song from the musical 42nd Street was an unfortunate choice.
And it led to media questions about how much he would personally make from the merger.
In a subsequent interview with Channel 4, he said: “I am a big shareholder in Sainsbury’s, my shareholding is a matter of public record, you can see how many shares I own.
“It is unfortunate I was caught singing, as I say I was relaxing at the time – this is an incredibly stressful day and maybe it was an unfortunate choice of song.”
Prince Charles on those ‘bloody people’
No look back at notorious hot-mic errors would be complete without the time Prince Charles voiced his frustration at the media.
And in particular, the BBC’s royal correspondent Nicholas Witchell.
"I can't bear that man. He's so awful. He really is." — Prince Charles slagging off Nicholas Witchell (Apr 2005) pic.twitter.com/ksfeBK54Ah
— paulusthewoodgnome 🇺🇦💙 (@woodgnomology) January 5, 2023
It happened during an official photocall with his sons during a skiing holiday in Switzerland in 2005.
Having faced several questions about his upcoming wedding from Mr Witchell, he turned to his sons and muttered: “Bloody people. I can’t bear that man. He is so awful, he really is.”
Ken Clarke and the ‘bloody difficult woman’
Another high-profile hot mic moment came when Ken Clarke gossiped with a colleague after a Sky News interview.
It happened during a Conservative Party leadership contest in 2016, something he described as a “fiasco” during his chat with Malcolm Rifkind.
He described leading candidate Theresa May as “bloody difficult”, suggested Andrea Leadsom, another contestant, had said some “extremely stupid things”, and predicted Michael Gove would take the UK to war “with three countries at once”.
Not exactly ringing endorsements.
The conversation took place in front of a camera. But Mr Clarke did not think it was recording. The footage was later released by the broadcaster.
It said: “Their conversation revealed important insights about those vying not just to be Conservative Party leader, but also Prime Minister. We believe that there is a strong public interest in their views being known.”
This is a light-hearted look at some memorable media interview mishaps.
But it is also a reminder of the importance of remembering the basics whenever you speak to the media.
During our media training courses, we stress delegates should assume any microphone or camera is ‘on’ before and after an interview. Or that it is always ‘hot’.
Even if they are not close by, remember they are sensitive and can potentially pick up whispered conversations.
Whether interviewed face-to-face or remotely through Zoom or Teams, assume you are live as soon as you enter the studio or approach the journalist.
Another good media training tip is to avoid saying anything you would not want the audience to hear. Or have shared all over the internet. Avoid any side conversations or off-the-cuff remarks.
If you do endure a hot mic moment, address it like Ms Keegan. You can’t pretend it didn’t happen.
Apologise and maybe add some humour to diffuse the situation – Ms Keegan told Sky News her mother was not impressed with the language she has used.
While that was a good line, don’t follow her lead by appearing to blame others.
In another interview with Jeremy Vine on BBC Radio 2 the following day, she suggested frustration with headteachers could have caused the outburst.
“The annoying bit, and this was probably a bit of my frustration yesterday, is despite asking since March 2020, there’s five per cent of schools or responsible bodies that have not responded to the survey. Now, hopefully, all this publicity will make them get off their backsides.”
That saw the Education Secretary face another series of angry headlines.
Maybe she’ll have to sit on her backside and take a backseat with media interviews for a while.
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